Organizers of the 15th annual Kelowna Secondary School Cancer Week drive-thru breakfast say Thursday’s event was another success.
The breakfast, put on by the school’s Grade 12 leadership class, was held this year in the parking lot of the RONA store on Springfield Avenue and attracted plenty of generous, and hungry, patrons.
“Each year we raise between $3,000 and $4,000 for the B.C. Cancer Foundation,” said Fane Triggs, the leadership teacher whose students organize and run the event.
He said since 2003, the event has raised a total of $360,000 for the BCCF.
The event started as a tribute to Connor Cochrane, a KSS Grade 11 student who passed away after a battle with cancer in 2003.
Triggs said while the aim of the event is to help teach the students about organizing and running an event, the fact they can help raise money at the same time for a good cause such as the fight against cancer makes it so much sweeter.
On Friday, the school will also hold its annual head-shaving event, another fundraiser for cancer research.
Janel Filipiak, a Grade 12 leadership class student at KSS, said with so many people affected by cancer, the breakfast—now a popular tradition at the school—is an important way for students can come together and help in the community.
While the Thursday’s event was a first for her, Filipiak said she is no stranger to lending a hand to help a good cause.
As a singer, she said she has often sung at local fundraisers, lending her voice to help other groups raise money for charity.
On Thursday, the KSS students distributed 80 breakfast wraps, as well as coffee and muffins to drivers who were passing by. In return, the drivers gave a donation to the cancer foundation.